“There are only two kinds of people in the world. The Irish and those who wish they were.”
– Irish Saying

While I know that St. Patrick’s Day is a mostly Irish-American phenomenon, it was something I’ve enjoyed celebrating in a very green way from my childhood until now. When I was in grade school, my mom would temporarily dye my hair bright green with food coloring and send me to class decked out in all green clothes as well. My teachers got a kick out of this and would show me around to different classrooms so everyone else could see my green garb from head to toe. This all stopped one year when it took 3 weeks for the green to wash out of my very platinum blonde hair! Yikes.

I was delighted to find the romanesco cauliflower at our local co-op, which is a green colored veggie that looks like little Christmas trees. Perfect for our green-themed dinner!While pickled carrots are probably not the most traditional Irish meal, I found it made a great addition to the flavor profile for the evening.

As a big fan of Gardein’s products, I was glad that I had some Turk’y Cutlets with gravy leftover in the freezer from a big sale I was lucky to hit around Christmas time. These went perfect with everything else.A couple of years ago a friend made a vegan Irish Cream for us, but I’m not sure what recipe was used. A quick search online landed me the easy-to-make and very delicious recipe from Oh She Glows. I don’t even like coffee or whiskey, but this hit the spot and was like a divine dessert after supper.We ended the night with a viewing of the campy Soylent Green: The miracle food of high-energy plankton gathered from the oceans of the world! It doesn’t get more green than that.

During holidays, particularly in the colder months, I love baking and putting together festive fare! This Christmas was no exception. Technically we had this meal for Christmas Eve and had enough leftovers that we ate it for Christmas dinner as well. Delish!

We’ve been big fans of most of the Gardein products to date and saw that they came out with a limited edition Holiday Roast. I’ve been so over the Tofurky Roast for years, so it was nice to have another main dish alternative.As per the instructions on the Gardein Holiday Roast, I cut up some root veggies (potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and onions) to roast along with the main loaf. I tossed the veggies with a dill, soy-sauce and orange juice marinade (based upon the marinade recipe on the Gardein box) that I also used to baste the roast with. The roast came with a delicious brown gravy that would also be wonderful with a side of mashed potatoes.I served the roast and veggies with sauteed kale (see recipe below), Thug Kitchen’s cranberry sauce, and crescent rolls (many of which are accidentally vegan). TK’s cranberry sauce is one of the simplest cranberry sauce recipes I’ve come across, yet still packed with flavor. It’s not too sweet and not too tart. It’s just right!Sauteed KaleServes 3-4

Wash the kale well and rip off the stem into small pieces. Place kale into a large saucepan or wok on the stove top. Add some water to the pan with the kale and cook on low to medium heat covered (this helps to steam the kale and prevents sticking). Stir every few minutes to distribute cooking and add more water as needed. When the kale becomes the desired, softer texture, toss with the vinegar, liquid smoke, and cayenne pepper in the last few minutes of cooking. Serve immediately.

This was an excellent, fun meal. Even my omnivore loved ones were impressed.Overall, we’d rate the meal as 5 out of 5 carrots on the veganlicious scale!

We traveled to Hawaii this summer because I was presenting at a conference for work. I have heard great things about the vegan options there and was happy to explore the islands to find vegan food. I was extremely pleased with a vegan loco moco that I had at the Downbeat Diner in Honolulu. Loco moco is a traditional Hawaiian meal, usually made up of white rice, a meat patty, brown gravy, and eggs. There are many variations of this, but it was a real treat to have a vegan version. Here’s an amazing video for vegan loco moco from veggietorials using The Vegg. I didn’t have the time, nor the ingredients for the spherification process, so I kept it simple.

Cook the brown rice as per instructions on the stove top, or in a pressure or rice cooker. Set aside. Prepare your preferred tofu scramble recipe. I love Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s tofu scramble from Vegan Brunch. In this variation, I added diced red pepper and onions. Prepare your vegan gravy (using a prepared version or make your own from scratch). I used an organic vegan brown gravy packet that I mixed with water on the stove top for simplicity. Heat your vegan sausage patties in a skillet as your tofu scramble is finishing up. Scoop a cup of rice on a large plate and pat down. Place your sausage patty on top of the rice. Cover with a few tablespoons of brown gravy. Top with tofu scramble. Add a few dashes of hot sauce or sriracha if you desire. Serve immediately.